| Politics, Economics, and International Trade |
Joe White, Ph.D. - Luxenberg Family Professor of Public Policy at Case Western Reserve University |
Friday September 23, 2016
12:30-1:30 p.m.
***Alternate Location: Mather House Room 100***
Case Western Reserve University
Dear Colleagues:
When I was a scholar at the Brookings Institution, I learned that "free trade" was a matter of near-religious belief for many of my colleagues. For decades, "Serious People," to use Paul Krugman's term for elites, dismissed concerns about trade's effects on Americans as selfish pleading from shortsighted special interests, such as unions and uncompetitive businesses. Outsiders like Ross Perot who criticized treaties (remember the "giant sucking sound" of jobs that were supposed to head south with NAFTA?) were dismissed as know-nothings. Both Democratic and Republican presidents pushed for more extensive "free trade" agreements; and that continues with President Obama's advocacy for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
Hence one of the most dramatic aspects of the 2016 presidential campaign – and one of the few with serious policy content – has been the fact that both presidential candidates have opposed the TPP, and endorsed worries about the effects of trade. But is the current skepticism simply (or only) pandering to an uninformed public? What are the cases for and against trade, and trade agreements? To begin, they're not the same thing. Trade policy is not only about trade, or even economics; the effects of specific trade agreements on people in other countries might not be so positive either, and so the political and economic question is both broader and narrower than, "is trade good for Americans?"
All best regards,
Joe White
Luxenberg Family Professor of Public Policy and Director, Center for Policy Studies
About Our Guests
As Director of the Center for Policy Studies, Joe White organizes and usually moderates the Friday Lunch discussions, as well as sponsoring 3-6 other public programs each year. His appointment as Luxenberg Family Professor of Public Policy is in the Department of Political Science, and he also has a secondary appointment as Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. His research focuses on federal budget politics and policy; health care, especially cost control and reform; the politics of social insurance programs such as Medicare and Social Security; and differences between rich democracies' health care systems. He is author or co-author of three books and about six dozen articles, with his most recent work being on relations between the president and Congress in federal budgeting and on budgeting for healthcare programs around the world.
Where We Meet
The Friday Public Affairs Lunch convenes each Friday when classes are in session, from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. Our programs are open to all and no registration is required. Mather House is located next to the old Thwing student center two buildings to the right of Kelvin Smith Library on Euclid Avenue. Please enter the front door to Mather House and turn right. Mather House Room 100 is at the end of the hall.
Parking Possibilities
The most convenient parking is the lot underneath Severance Hall. We regret that it is not free. From that lot there is an elevator up to street level labeled as Thwing Center.
Schedule of Friday Lunch Upcoming Topics and Speakers:
September 30: What Next for the British Labour Party? With Luke Reader Ph.D., SAGES Lecturer.
October 7: The Lake Erie Wind Farm and the Future of Wind Energy. With David Matthiesen, Associate Professor of Materials Science and Engineering and Director, Wind Energy Research and Commercialization Center.
October 14: Living Black: Social Life in an African-American Neighborhood.. With Mark S. Fleisher, Research Professor, Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences. Alternate Location: Mather House Room 100.
October 21: The DARPA Robotics Challenge and the Future of Robotics. With Wyatt S. Newman, Professor of Electrical, Computer and Systems Engineering.
October 28: Macroeconomic Challenges for the Next Administration. With Mark S. Sniderman, Executive in Residence and Adjunct Professor of Economics, Weatherhead School of Management, and former Research Director, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
November 4: Biennial Political Science Department Pre-Election Forecast Discussion.
November 11: The Unrealized Promise of Libertarianism. With Gus Dizerega, Ph.D., independent political theorist.
November 18: Can Democracy Meet the Challenge of Polarization? With Mark Chupp, Assistant Professor, Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Social Sciences.
November 25: Thanksgiving Break.
December 2: Putin's Russia. With Kelly M. McMann, Associate Professor of Political Science and Director, International Studies Program.
December 9: Health Care Report Cards – Time for Second Thoughts? With J.B. Silvers, John R. Mannix Medical Mutual of Ohio Professor of Health Care Finance. |
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September 18, 2016
If you would like to reply, submit items for inclusion, or not receive this weekly e-mail please send a notice to: padg@case.edu
Upcoming Events
Marijuana Legalization and Federalism
Join us for the annual CWRU Constitution Day program for a discussion with a CWRU student panel featuring speakers Jonathan H. Adler, J.D., Johan Verheij Memorial Professor, Case Western Reserve University School of Law and Brannon P. Denning, J.D., Associate Dean and Professor, Cumberland School of Law, Samford University, Monday September 19, 2016, 4:00-5:30 p.m., Moot Courtroom CWRU School of Law, 11075 East Blvd.,
Cleveland, OH 44106-1769. This program is sponsored by the Office of the President, Office of Government and Community Relations, Department of Political Science, Center for Policy Studies, and the School of Law. A reception will follow at the law school.
The possession and use of marijuana have been illegal at the federal level since the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937. Many states initially followed suit with similar legislation. But over the past twenty years there has been an increasing number of challenges to marijuana prohibition.
Since 1996, when California legalized medical use of marijuana through Proposition 215, 23 other states have done the same despite federal law. Four of those states have legalized its recreational use as well. Opinion polls suggest a growing majority of Americans support legalizing marijuana for both medical and recreational use.
The Constitution Day Committee welcomes Brannon Denning and Jonathan Adler to discuss significant questions regarding marijuana legalization and pertinent federalism issues. In discussing the current controversy over marijuana legalization, the forum will address a long-standing debate in American history: states’ vs. federal powers.
How Congress Spends Your Money: An Inside View of the Congressional Budget
A discussion with Colleen Gaydos, Professional Staff Member, U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, Subcommittee on Defense, Friday, September 23, 2016, 4:30 - 6:00 p.m., Room 309 Clark Hall, 11130 Bellflower Road, Cleveland, OH 44106. Sponsored by the CWRU Department of Political Science.
While political parties slam each other, budget decisions get delayed in "shutdown"battles and various audiences jeer, Congress still manages to alocate trillions of dollars (with the president's approval) each year. Colleen Gaydos is the staff person within the Defense Appropriations subcommittee in the Senate who works on "Other Procurement" for the Navy; Research, Development, Test and Evaluation for the Army; the Defense Health Program; the Office of the Inspector General; and Chemical Demilitarization. Her portfolio alone tells us about what has to be decided. So how does that work? She shares her view of how decisions are made amid the conflict.
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